BERLIN –
A major gas pipeline from Russia to Western Europe was shut down for annual maintenance on Monday amid fears in Germany that Russia may not resume gas supplies on schedule.
The Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline runs under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany and is the main source of Russian gas for the latter. Gas is usually sent to other countries as well. It is scheduled to be out of service until July 21 for routine work, which the operator said includes “testing of mechanical elements and automation systems.” Data from the operator showed gas flows were falling as planned on Monday morning.
German authorities are suspicious of Russia’s intentions, especially after Russia’s Gazprom cut gas flow through Nord Stream 1 by 60 percent last month. Gazprom cited technical problems with a gas turbine powering a compressor station that partner Siemens Energy sent to Canada for major repairs and could not be returned due to sanctions imposed over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Canada said over the weekend it would allow the part to be shipped to Germany, citing the “very significant difficulties” the German economy would suffer without sufficient gas supplies.
German politicians rejected Russia’s technical explanation for last month’s cut in Nord Stream 1 gas flows, saying the decision was a political move to sow uncertainty and raise prices.
German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck said he suspected Russia might cite “some small technical details” as a reason not to resume gas supplies through the pipeline after maintenance this month.
The head of Germany’s grid regulator, the Bundesnetzagentur, said “nobody can say for sure” whether gas will be restarted.
“We have very diverse signals from Russia,” Klaus Müller told ZDF television. “There are Kremlin spokesmen who say that in combination with the Siemens turbine they can deliver significantly more again; but there were also many combative messages from the Kremlin.”
On Sunday, Ukraine’s energy and foreign affairs ministries said in a joint statement that the return of the Nord Stream 1 turbines “tailors the sanctions regime to Russia’s whims.”
Germany and the rest of Europe are scrambling to fill gas storage in time for winter and reduce their dependence on Russian energy imports. Germany, which has Europe’s largest economy, gets about 35% of its gas for energy and power generation from Russia.
Last month, Habeck activated the second phase of Germany’s three-stage emergency plan for natural gas supplies, warning that Europe’s biggest economy was facing a “crisis” and winter storage targets were at risk.
There is also concern in other countries about the implications of recent reductions in Russian supplies via Nord Stream 1 and other routes.
French Economy and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said over the weekend that a complete shutdown of Russian gas supplies was a “plausible possibility.” He said France must go into “battle mode” this summer to prepare for the winter, when “we will have to make bold choices” amid likely energy shortages.
“We’re not going to be able to warm up and act like nothing has changed,” Le Maire said. “We have to plan and organize now, we have to change our habits, reduce our (energy) consumption.”
Separately, Italian energy company ENI said Gazprom cut gas supplies on Monday by about a third compared to the average in recent days. ENI said in a statement that Gazprom would provide 21 million cubic meters of gas, compared with an average of about 32 million cubic meters.
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Barbara Surk in Nice, France, and Nicole Winfield in Rome contributed to this report
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